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Friday, April 23, 2010

You might have already called and wished her but when I spoke to her in the morning, she had just woken up and kept asking about Hardykdada in perfectly accented Bengali.

You will surely remember your time with her at Thammi's and Dadu's (it is our good fortune that they should have been my parents, and I, their child) place at Kolkata from some time back. You can read about it here.

She has grown into a lovely little girl, just as you have grown into a lovely little boy, and you will meet her soon and we will have a lot of fun together.

Till we meet again, do you know why Kolkata is called the City of Joy? Because every second person is a Bijoy, Ajoy, or a Sanjoy!!

Thursday, April 1, 2010

In the name of truth, the human race has committed its worst crimes. Men and women have been burned. The culture of whole civilizations has been destroyed. Those who sought a different path have been marginalized.

One specific human, on behalf of "truth", was crucified. But, before dying, he left behind a great definition of Truth.

It is not what gives us certainty. It is not what gives us depth. Is not what makes us better than others. It is not what keeps us in the prison of prejudice.

The truth is what gives us freedom.

Several biological studies have shown that a frog placed in a container along with water from his pond, he will remain alive while you heat the water. The toad does not react to the gradual increase of temperature (change of environment) and only dies when the water boils, swollen and happy.

On the other hand, if a toad is thrown into that same container when the water is already boiling, he will immediately jump out. He will be a little singed, but alive!

Sometimes we can be like the boiled toads. We do not notice changes. We think everything is good, or that whatever is evil will pass, it's just a matter of time. We are about to die, but we are floating, stable and apathetic as the water warms up every minute. We are dying, fat and happy, without having noticed the changes around us.

There are boiled toads who still believe that the key is obedience, not competence: might is right, and obey whoever is sensible. From all this, where is the real life? It is better to emerge from a situation, maybe a little singed from time to time, but alive and ready to act.